Mike Balfour, 60, founded the Fitness First chain of health clubs; the Hideaways Club, a fractional ownership property group; and YachtPlus, which allows members shared ownership of 41-metre yachts designed by Norman Foster. He lives in Sotogrande, Andalucia, Spain and Gibraltar.
Where did you grow up?
In the south of England, in a place called Brockenhurst, in the New Forest. That was really from about the age of 10 – before that we travelled around a lot.
Did the home you grew up in influence the type of home you like to live in now?
No, it didn’t really influence me. I like homes near the sea or rivers. Both [of my houses] look over golf courses and right down to the sea.
What made you decide to have two houses so close to one another?
Well, the strict answer is that Gibraltar has tax advantages. But, having said that, it’s a really nice place. And Sotogrande is a lovely leisure and sporting estate, with polo and golf courses and a beach. The two houses are totally different. The Gibraltar one is right on the water’s edge. The water laps within 10 metres of the back garden. So last weekend I was watching a British destroyer come in just 100m from my garden. I have watched US nuclear submarines tie up and all sorts of things like that. A big US Coast Guard ship arrived there recently. I said: “What on earth is the US Coast Guard doing in Gibraltar?” I think it was coming back from Iraq. So, it’s a really interesting place.
Where do you spend more time?
It’s split almost equally between the two, with a large portion of my time travelling. I still visit London, or other places in Europe, because I’m still a director of Fitness First.
MY FAVOURITE THINGS
Photos, awards and a big car
My little iPod, an essential part of the going-to-sleep process.
A photo my son gave me. He climbed Mount Everest last year and became the fifth-youngest Briton to reach the summit. He had a picture taken on top and he held a placard up that said “To Dad”.
My political photos. For various reasons, mainly associated with the health club business, I’ve had many photos taken: one with president George Bush Sr, Bill Clinton, James Baker (former US secretary of state), Margaret Thatcher, Princess Anne and others.
In 2000 I won the entrepreneur of the year award in the UK. That was a very nice accolade.
I was given the OBE last year, so I keep that in my desk drawer.
I’ve got some pre-Columbian art. I was based in South America for three years in the 1970s and I collected these artefacts: pots that are hundreds of years old. I’ve transported them all across the world.
The Bentley that I keep in England.
Which is your favourite home?
Sotogrande. We call it “the villa”. It was built four years ago, is typical Spanish architecture and ridiculously large ... far too large. I don’t know why it is that you get the biggest houses when you need them the least. You need the biggest house when you have children running around. My children – Sarah is 28 and James is 25 – have flown the nest. They visit reasonably often. We see them more in the south of Spain than we would if we lived in England – it’s a good reason to come.
With whom do you share the villa?
My wife, Margaret, and a couple of dogs: a border collie and a Spanish rescue dog.
When you built the house, was there any element you had to have?
Yes, balconies on every bedroom. I also have a cinema – a full, big-screen cinema in the basement of the house – and that’s my pride and joy.
Having started Fitness First, do you have a gym in your home?
I do but it doesn’t get used much because I’ve joined the gym in the hotel about 500 metres from the house. Home gyms never get used much: there’s no atmosphere, it’s just you, and it doesn’t have the wide range of equipment a gym usually has.
What’s your favourite room in the house?
The one I spend the most time in is my study. It’s an essential part. It’s very strange because the dogs love it when I go in. They lie in there for as long as I’m there. It’s the cool floor that does it.
What led you to Sotogrande?
I think we started going on holiday back in the late 1990s. We bought one house and liked it so much that we decided to build one. That’s what everybody does, really, if they can. It’s more difficult than it appears, though. I wouldn’t do it again, but it seemed a good idea at the time.
When you visit London, where do you stay?
I stay in a fractional ownership place in London. It’s perfect – everything is taken care of. It has none of the hassle of ownership and that’s exactly what we do with the Hideaways Club.
Do you prefer to be in a big city or a small town?
I do like going to the big cities: London, New York, Paris, Singapore, Bangkok. I wouldn’t want to live in one permanently but they are nice. There’s nowhere more exciting than New York.
